Sierra Leone’s reputation was that of a talented horse that never seemed to win. In his last four races he finished second twice and third twice. That all changed Saturday when he surged ahead at the top of the stretch to win the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at the Del Mar Turf Club.
The three-year-old colt beat the favorite Fierceness, winner of the Travers Stakes, by one and a half lengths. The Japanese horse Forever Young came third and Newgate finished fourth.
Sierra Leone finished 11th in the 14-horse field and hung in the middle until the far turn when he started to make his move. He came third at the mile marker. He went to work with Fierceness entering the stretch, but ultimately his late speed was too much for the competition.
“For him to have this moment and get over all the frustrations of the year [is unbelievable]” said coach Chad Brown. [There were] races where I went in thinking I would finally win the Derby or finally win the Travers with this horse, but then walk away and saddle him without the win. This really makes it good.
“This is an incredible horse. Anyone could have trained him and he would have had a great career because he just looks fantastic. He is well behaved and he makes your job easy.
Sierra Leone paid $15.80 to win as the fourth choice.
Jockey Flavien Prat rode the 3-year-old colt for the fourth time. The horse’s last win came April 6 in the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland with Tyler Gaffalione aboard.
All the talk during the race was about City of Troy, winner of six of seven lives. The only problem is that he runs mainly in England and only on the field. The question was how he would do on the dirt in the 1 ¼ mile race. The answer was that he finished eighth.
The Classic is the signature event of the two-day Breeders’ Cup and also the richest race in the United States. It was played in the middle of the card for the second year in a row so that NBC could switch to a college football game. For the first 39 years it was run as the final Breeders’ Cup race.
The day took a tragic turn in the $5 million Turf when Jayarebe collapsed at a gallop after the race. The preliminary reason, according to a veterinarian, was sudden death, probably a heart attack. He finished seventh in the race at odds of approximately 9-1.
It was the 15th death at the Breeders’ Cup in the event’s 41-year history. The last death was in 2021 in the Classic, when Mongolian Gloom broke at the top of the stretch.
Jayarebe is a 3-year-old colt who races mainly in Europe. It was his eighth lifetime race.
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Thorpedo Anna made her case for Horse of the Year with an easy win in the $2 million Distaff, for female horses going 1 1/8 miles on the dirt. She broke into the lead and then cruised to a 2.5 length victory. Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. took advantage of a slow pace to win in what amounted to little more than a paid workout.
The Distaff lost much of its firepower when Idiomatic, last year’s champion, withdrew from the race. Thorpedo Anna has won six of her seven races this year. Her only loss was a head to Fierceness in the Travers Stakes, where she ran against all male horses.
“She’s so special, it looks so easy,” coach Kenny McPeek said. “She really made our job easy all year round.
McPeek said the current plan is to bring her back as a four-year-old.
“We’ll put a plan in place for that,” McPeek said. “I think she’s been so much fun and she’s healthy. We’ll probably let her have Dr. [Larry] Bramlage [of Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky.] and poke her a little, make sure everything is okay before we finally make that decision.
One of the first upsets came in the $1 million Turf Sprint, when heavy favorite Cogburn lost to Starlust ($69.20) in the five-furlong race. Cogburn had a 2 ½ length lead coming into the stretch and then just ran out of gas. He finished sixth.
Starlust, who competes in England, has been largely overlooked after finishing ninth, third and sixth in his last three races.
“I thought Cogburn had slipped me at the top of the stretch,” said jockey Rossa Ryan. “They couldn’t keep up the hectic gallop we had.”
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The first Breeders’ Cup race of the day was the $1 million Filly & Mare Sprint, a seven-furlong race won by Soul of an Angel ($41.60). The 5-year-old mare was intensively active during her 41st race in her life. It was her sixth lifetime victory.
He is trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. and ridden by Drayden Van Dyke.
Van Dyke, a fixture in Southern California, took some time away from racing last year, so Saturday’s win was a welcome boost.
“Personally, I felt like I needed it,” Van Dyke said. “I’ve been going non-stop since I was 18. I lost my father at the age of 18. I just kept going. I’ve never had the inclination to really grieve and process everything. I took time for myself.”
Rebel’s Romance ($5.80) won the $5 million Turf for trainer Charlie Appleby and jockey William Buick.
After the Classic, there were four other Breeders’ Cup races.
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
